This application relate to a holder for the storage and/or dispensing of toilet paper rolls.
Rolled toilet paper is marketed as a continuous sheet of soft absorbent paper divided into about 500 to 1500 panels by perforated tear lines. Toilet paper is usually dispensed by mounting the central cardboard tube on a cylindrical rod and pulling on the exposed panel to rotate the tube on the rod. The roll is finite.
When the toilet paper is exhausted, a fresh roll is needed. Most toilets and toilet paper dispensers are located remote from locations where fresh toilet paper rolls are stored such as cabinets under the sink or linen closets or other closets. In industrial and commercial restrooms, extra rolls are usually provided within the dispenser or by mounting a plurality of dispensers near the toilet. Some of these multiple roll. dispensers have complex mechanisms for storing the roll and translating it into place when the adjacent roll is exhausted.
Brillante discloses a cylindrical roll storage container with removal front panel and hinged top. Breger illustrates a rectangular toilet paper dispenser with top hinged front cover. Balanesi""s cylindrical tissue dispenser and receptacle has an openable top cover lid. The recessed toilet tissue holder and dispenser disclosed by Marchand deploys outwardly when the cover is opened. Batlas, et al. teaches a rectangular paper towel dispenser with a latched and hinged 3-sided cover. Sweeney discloses a rectangular toilet paper dispenser with a bottom hinged front cover. The rectangular toilet roll storage container disclosed by Powaska has the rolls stored horizontally. Poole illustrates a cylindrical toilet paper pedestal dispenser for 3 rolls.
Ramirez""s and Paul, et al.""s rectangular toilet tissue storage container have horizontal storage.
Sineni""s cylindrical storage container hangs on a toilet tank and has vertical storage of 3 rolls. The rolls are dispensed through the top of the container.
Kaysserian discloses a rectangular holder dispenser for vertical storage of rolls. Tegg shows a side by side or stacked horizontal storage of rolls. Morand discloses a cylindrical container-dispenser storing one extra vertically positioned roll. Schutz shows a vertical container with curved front and flat rear panel for vertically stacking two rolls. Sheets are dispensed through a cone dispenser positioned in the bottom wall.
FIG. 8 of Traver shows a container for storing 2 vertical rolls side by side. There is a top lid for access to the rolls.
The toilet paper storage device of the present invention can be used either as a dispenser or alternatively, for storage device of a single or multiple rolls of toilet paper.
The storage device of the invention is designed to enclose and thereby protect one or more rolls of toilet paper from inadvertent contact with water or other liquids which could damage the paper""s usefulness. The design of the holder of the invention makes it easier for children or the elderly to grip the cover and displace it in order to gain access to the toilet paper stored therein. Specifically, the design incorporates a gripping means which is preferably in the form of a raised front panel which is integral with the cover.
The storage device of the invention comprises two parts: a base and a cover.
The base comprises a bottom wall and a flat back wall integral with one another. The bottom has a periphery which is substantially three-quarters circular shape having a sufficient diameter for placement over the outside surface of a roll of toilet paper. The remaining portion of the bottom""s periphery is linear. The back wall extends upward and away from the bottom wall.
The height of the back wall is designed to be slightly higher than the maximum number of toilet rolls which can be stacked inside the storage device. The back wall can be attached to the wall of a building or positioned along the side wall of a toilet tank. Attachment to a wall can be accomplished either by utilizing apertures located in the back wall in conjunction with screws secured to the wall of the building, or by use of an adhesive means such as adhesive tape or the like attached to the back wall of the device. If positioning along the side of a toilet tank is desired, either the adhesive means described above could be used or the base can further include a means to hang the device from the edge of the toilet tank.
The base further comprises a sidewall extending vertically away from or near the peripheral edge along the three-quarter circular shape of the bottom. The sidewall is defined as the portion of the base extending upwardly away from or near the peripheral edge of the bottom which is not considered the back. The sidewall is also joined or is integral with the back wall.
The upward extending sidewall is not required to be of uniform height. Preferably, the sidewall height is highest at its interfaces with the back. The top edge portions of the sidewall immediately adjacent to the back provide horizontal support surfaces for the cover when placed in position.
The portion of the sidewall distal from the back defines a raised front. The raised front is that portion of the sidewall which extends radially outward from the center of the bottom wall, relative to the adjacent portion of the sidewall. The raised front may have either a flat or convex surface.
The cover comprises a top and a sidewall. The contour of the cover sidewall is such that it can be slid over the sidewall base until the top rests upon the horizontal support surfaces described above.
To remove the cover from the base the raised front is used as a gripping means. Since the raised front is significantly less than the general diameter of the cover, it is much easier for children and the elderly to grip and control using only one hand. Alternatively, the gripping means could comprise a separate handle connected to the sidewall cover. However, this would make the device more expensive to manufacture.
Minor modifications can be utilized to make the storage device of the invention function as a dispenser or as a storage device.
If the device is to be used as a dispenser, it would also incorporate a cone extending with an upward taper from the center of the base bottom. In addition, there are two raised ribs on the lower front end of the base. These ribs both serve as reinforcement of the device and also to hold the cover in place to prevent/minimize side to side movement by the cover when toilet paper is being dispensed through the aperture. An aperture for displacement of sheets of toilet paper would be formed in the cover, preferably in the raised front portion of the cover sidewall. A single roll of toilet paper would be positioned about the cone, the free end of the toilet paper would be guided through the toilet paper aperture located on the cover and thereafter, the cover would be slid into position upon the base. When a replacement roll is desired, the user can grip the raised front with one hand, lift the cover, remove the core of the spent roll and replace it with a new roll. The cover is repositioned on the base after feeding the free end of the replace roll through the aperture on the cover.
If the device is to be used as storage only, it could be sized to store more than one roll of toilet paper and could also incorporate a pivoting means which would allow the cover to swing open in a direction away from the base back wall. The pivoting means may comprise a pair of prongs extending downward from the raised front of the cover, the tips of which contact two flat level surfaces on the raised front of the base sidewall. Additionally, a pair of guide tracks can be provided on the sidewall cover, each receiving a member which extends horizontally away from the base sidewall. The guide track can be a curved, arc-shaped aperture. The distal end of each member would extend through the corresponding arc-shaped aperture. The cover can then pivot into an open or closed position because of the prong tips in contact with the flat level surfaces.
To either add or remove rolls from the device, the user would grip the raised front and pull the cover outward. The cover would pivot about the prongs and could be pulled to the extent that the guide track arc-apertures would permit. To close, the cover is pushed toward the base back wall until the cover is again resting on the base.
It is to be understood, that a single sidewall joined to both sides of the base back wall is not a critical part of my invention and that alternatively, a pair of sidewalls can be utilized which do not join with one another.
Although the cover and base can be made of different material, preferably, both are made of the same material and most preferably, they are made of a lightweight plastic.
These and many other features and attendant advantages of the invention will become apparent as the invention becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.